Between memory and desire
Subtitle: the Middle East in a troubled age
By: R. Stephen Humphreys.
Publisher: University of California Press
Published: 1999
Place of publication: Berkeley, Calif
Language: eng
Number of pages: 297
Subjects: Islam and politics -- Middle East; Middle East -- Politics and government -- 1945-
Description: R. Stephen Humphreys's new book presents a much-needed and thoughtful analysis of Islam's place in today's Middle East. In clear, accessible language, he examines both the medieval and modern history of the region to show the interweaving of the sacred and secular in its political and intellectual life.

Between Memory and Desire reminds us how Middle Easterners remember the past: the colonial era as a time of shame, the post-independence period as disappointing, and the Middle Ages as glorious. Driven by these memories, they struggle to liberate themselves from that past and to seize what they view as rightfully theirs.
Notes: Includes bibliographical references (p. 289-292) and index.